(S05E04) This week didn't really bring anything mind-blowing, but it returned us to old stomping grounds. With this episode, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia revisited a few familiar themes: gross people from the gang's history and the never-ending quest to bang moms. Mary Lynn Rajskub (remember, it's like "rice cub") made her Always Sunny debut as Dee and Dennis' "garbage pail cousin," Gail the Snail, and successfully joined the McPoyle brothers in that elite league of characters that make viewers feel greasy just from looking at them too long.

(S05E03) Something was a little off about this episode. I still can't tell what triggered this reaction. I think it was because I only half-laughed once or twice during the entire thing, or perhaps it was the heavy-handed product placements that were too involved to be casual and excusable. Certainly, it wasn't terrible television; it just didn't live up to the quality that I've come to expect from the show.

If I wanted to be harsh and really ballsy, I could say this was one of the weaker episodes from the series. But I won't. Because I have no balls (I haven't perfected the technology for me to engineer a pair).

(S05E02) Although it's interesting to see the individual characters play in their own storylines and schemes every once in a while, there's a lot to be said about the chemistry and rapid-fire interactions when all five members of the gang are stuck together for an entire episode. Doubly so when it's an episode that mainly takes place in a tiny car or cramped U-Haul.

In addition to this, their poor decision-making seems to escalate faster when they're feeding off each other's bad intentions, which means more laughter and delighted points-at-the-screen for us bozos.

(S05E01) It's Always Sunny is back and it's kicking your ass. Or at least it's threatening you and your wife until you start crying a little bit and agree to partake in the antics, and we wouldn't have it any other way. There were a lot of good moments in the premiere episode, though it didn't really feel like a typical season opener, in as much as it didn't present anything too big and different from the usual Always Sunny episode. Again, it was funny, of course, but it didn't scream "premiere", and perhaps that's the best thing for Always Sunny.

With the season five premiere of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia right around the corner (Thursday, 9/17 at 10 p.m. ET), FX is trying to drum up some buzz in a way that some may construe as inciting a mass riot... I like it.

They want people to dress up like Greenman, go out in public (grocery stores, concerts, whatever), and then tweet the resulting pictures or video - just make sure you tag your Twittered exploits with "#Sunnyfx." Right now there aren't too many "entries" on Twitter, but with a few weeks to go until the premiere (and thousands of drunk college students returning to campuses across the nation as we speak), I'm guessing there will be plenty of goofy Greenman antics very soon.

One of the most terribly underrated comedy shows on television today is FX's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Here's a hot tip for any Americans that have yet to experience the delightfully atrocious characters from the show: Get on it. Hulu is rolling through all of the episodes and they've just started at the beginning (first five episodes are now available). Perfect time to start, kids.

For those that are already a little more well-versed in the Always Sunny universe, there's fun stuff for you, too. The gang is taking an It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia tour to perform a live stage version of one of their most popular episodes, "The Nightman Cometh."

It's been just a little over a year since "Dayman" took the world by storm (that may be an exaggeration) in the season three It's Always Sunny ep "Sweet Dee's Dating a Retarded Person." Everyone knows the lyrics, there are tee-shirts, cell-phone ringtones, and now Charlie has taken his opus to a new level - musical.

Starting tonight, everyone's favorite group of misanthropes from the City of Brotherly Love are back to invoke mayhem and generally make the lives of everyone around them miserable. And I can't wait.

Yes, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is back for its fourth season on FX, and they're going to be around awhile, as the network picked them up for 39 additional episodes after this season's run of 13 are over. In addition, series creators Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton and Rob McElhenney will be working on a comedy for FOX called Boldly Going Nowhere, which is described as "Star Trek meets The Office." Imagine that: these guys are building an empire, all on episodes like this season's opener, where Mac and Dennis hunt down Cricket and Charlie and Dee become cannibals. You'll just have to watch it to get what I'm talking about.

I talked with Day, Howerton, and McElhenney about the upcoming season, the popularity of "Day Man / Night Man," their new show, and how co-star (and Rob's fiancee) Kaitlin Olson broke her back. Interview is after the jump.

Can't get enough It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia? The irreverent FX comedy is back September 18th (10/9 Central) for a fourth season of shenanigans unlike anything live action non-sketch television comedy has ever given us. Except for those other shows you are about to fill the comments with. If you're anxious for the show to start, and want more of Charlie, Mac, Frank, Dennis and Sweet Dee then have I got a treat for you.

Okay, well that's not fair. I really didn't have anything to do with it. But show writers Patrick Walsh and Sonny Lee aren't here to take credit for it, so we'll just say it's all me. That's right, come check out Paddy's Pub, the new production blog for the upcoming season of It's Always Sunny. It features cast interviews as well as excerpts from Dennis' erotic memoir and even an advice column written by Frank. Now there isn't much there right now, but it only launched August 26th. I mean seriously, what the hell do you people want from me ... I mean from staff writers Patrick Walsh and Sonny Lee.

File this one under awesome. To help promote the upcoming fourth season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, FX is launching a traveling game show where fans can test their Sunny wits in a trivia challenge. The tour kicks off today at the University of Colorado and spans the country making stops at other campuses like UC Berkeley and Hofstra University.

The contest will feature five rounds of questions as well as a bonus spin wheel where fans can walk away with DVD sets, apparel, and yes - the grand prize - The Golden Dumpster Baby. Everyone remembers that episode, right?

I suppose this is a pretty good idea. For the most part, the audience FX is targeting (college males who like fart and boob jokes) probably already know the show returns on September 18th. So for a lot of people, this is just a really cool bonus.

To prep for the season, FX has been airing promos like crazy (I embedded a great one featuring "Day Man" at the end of this post), but if you haven't been poking around the It's Always Sunny... website, you probably missed this: they made a music video.

The writers' strike forced some of my favorite shows into an unexpected, summer-long hiatus and delayed the return of others. I'm grateful that shows like Lost still have new episodes, but the second half of this TV season hasn't felt the same. I especially miss the promising new series that were cut short.

It feels like other shows have been on hiatus forever. Flight of the Conchords was supposed to return this year, but had its premiere pushed back until 2009. I miss Bret, Jemaine, and their strange circle of friends. I've been wondering about the fates of several absent characters lately. So many storylines were left unresolved.